MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING 

BETWEEN THE 

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES 

AND THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR 

I. INTRODUCTION 

This Memorandum ofUnderstanding (MOU) serves to set forth the authorities, 

responsibilities, and procedures by which the Department ofLabor (DOL) and the 

Department ofHealth and Human Services (HHS) will conduct statutorily mandated 

activities required to assist with claims processing under the Energy Employees 

Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act of2000 (EEOICPA or Act). EEOICPA 

provides for timely, uniform, and adequate compensation of covered employees and, 

where applicable, survivors ofsuch employees. 

DOL and HHS will make every effort to ensure that activities conducted under 1his 

MOU, as well as those conducted through other mechanisms, are coordinated, 

nonduplicative, and supportive ofa fair and timely compensation program for these 

workers and their survivors. 

II. BACKGROUND 

Part B ofEEOICPA establishes a compensation program to provide hnnp-smn payments 

and medical benefits as compensation to covered employees suffering from designated 

illnesses that occurred as a result oftheir exposure to radiation, berylli~ or silica while 

in the performance ofduty for the Department ofEnergy (DOE) and certain ofits 

vendors, contractors, and subcontractors. This law also provides for compensation 

payments to certain survivors ofcovered employees. In the Ronald W. Reagan National 

Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2005, Public Law 108-375 (codifie.d as 

amended in scattere.d sections ofTitle 42 ofthe U.S.C.), Congress abolished Part D of 

EEOICP A and created a new Part E in its place. Part E established a new system of 

Federal payments for employees ofDOE contractors and subcontractors, or their eligible 

survivors, who develop an illness due to exposure to toxic substances at certain DOE 

facilities. 

EEOICP A instructed the President to carry out the compensation program under Part B 

through one or more Federal Agencies or officials as designated by the President 

Pursuant to this statutory provision, the President issued Executive Order 13179 (E.O. 

13179), entitled "Providing Compensation to America's Nuclear Weapons Workers,'' 

which assigned primary responsibility for administering the compensation program under 

Part B to DOL. This Executive Order assigned certain specific responsibilities to DOL 

and HHS that are enumerated in other sections ofthis MOU. EEOICP A also instructed 

the President to establish and appoint an Advisory Board on Radiation and Worker 

Health (ABRWH or Advisory Board). 
ID.PURPOSE 

This MOU sets forth the guidelines for collaboration between DOL and HHS in carrying 

out their respective responsibilities under EEOICPA and E.O. 13179. This MOU is not 

intended to affect existing MOUs and Interagency Agreements (IA) between DOL and 

HHS or to preclude DOL and HHS from entering into MOUs and IAs for other purposes. 

IV. AUTHORITIES 

This MOU is consistent with, and is entered into wider, the authority ofEEOICPA and 

E.0 . 13179. 

V. RESPONSIBILITIES 

A. General - Executive Order 13179 

The responsibilities assigned to DOL by E.O. 13179 that are relevant to actual or 

potential interactions between DOL and HHS are as follows: 

1. Administer and decide all questions arising wider the Act not assigned to other 

agencies by the Act or by E.O. 13179, including determining the eligibility ofindividuals 

with covered occupational illnesses and their survivors and adjudicating claims for 

compensation and benefits. 

2. Ensure the availability, in paper and electronic format, offorms necessary for making 

claims wider EEOICP A. 

3. Develop informational materials to help potential claimants understand the Program 

and the application process, and provide these materials to individuals upon request. 

The responsibilities assigned to HHS by E.O. 13179 that are relevant to actual or 

potential interactions between HHS and DOL are as follows: 

1. Devel~ and implement procedures for considering and issuing determinations on 

petitions by classes ofemployees to be treated as members ofthe Special Exposure 

Cohort (SEC) (42 C.F.R. pt. 83, "Procedures for Designating Classes ofEmployees as 

Members ofthe Special Exposure Cohort under EEOICP A"). 

2. Apply the methods for providing reasonable estimates ofthe radiation doses received 

by individuals applying for assistance under EEOICPA, based on factual information 

regarding employment and verified conditions provided by DOL. 

2 
3. Provide the ABRWH with administrative services, funds, facilities, staff, and other 

necessary support services to carry out its functions under EEOICPA and the Federal 

Advisory Committee Act. 

B. DOL Responsibilities 

I. Provision ofData to HHS 

Upon request by HHS, or upon request by DOL for a dose reconstruction, and consistent 

with applicable law, DOL will provide HHS and HHS contractors with access to, and 

copies of, data, docwnents, and information deemed by HHS to be relevant and necessary 

for carrying out its responsibilities under EEOICPA, including estimating radiation doses 

for individual-covered employees with cancer, conducting reworks ofdose 

reconstructions when new information is available, conducting special reviews ofdose 

reconstruction methodology such as Program Evaluation Reports (PERs), evaluating 

petitions by classes of employees for inclusion in the SEC, and evaluating residual 

contamination at AWEs and beryllium vendors. 

DOL and HHS acknowledge that the actual data necessary to complete the 

responsibilities assigned to HHS will vary. DOL and HHS also recognize that 

information about worker exposures will vary from site to site. The Agencies will work 

cooperatively to coordinate research and data retrieval activities to assist in an efficient 

and effective claims process. DOL has established a Privacy Act System ofRecords, 

which includes the necessary routine uses required to cany out EEOICPA responsibilities 

for the following system ofrecord: 

(1) DO:UOWCP-11, "Office ofWorkers' Compensation Programs, Energy Employees 

Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act File," established on April 29, 2016. 

2. Protection ofPersonally Identifiable Information 

Information determined to be Personally Identifiable Information (PII) must be protected 

in accordance with relevant statutes, Office ofManagement and Budget (0MB) 

guidelines, and DOL and HHS regulations and policies. HHS Privacy Act regulations are 

found at 45 C.F.R. pt. 5b, and HHS policies regarding PII may be found at 

http://www.HHS.gov. DOL Privacy Act regulations are found at 29 C.F.R. pt. 71, and 

DOL policies regarding PII may be found at 

https:1/www.dol.gov/owcp/energy, rqwcompliancc/PolicyandProccdures1ConsolidatedPr 

ocedureManual..htm. 

For this MOU, all parties agree that PH must be protected in accordance with the Privacy 

Act of 1974, 0MB Circular No. A-130, "Management of Federal Information 

Resources," and each Agency's departmental policies. Transmission ofdata between 

Agencies will be in accordance with agreed-upon protocols, which will, at a minimum, 

include the following requirements: 

3 
1. Data stored on removable media (CD, DVD, USB Flash Drives, etc.) must be 

protected using encryption products that are Federal Information Processing Standards 

(FIPS) 140-2 certified. 

2. Passwords used in conjunction with FIPS 140-2 certified encryption must meet the 

current DOL password requirements (which at this time include a minimum of 8 

characters with at least one uppercase letter, one lowercase letter, one numeral (numbers 

0-9), and one special character(!@#$&)). 

3. Transmission ofremovable media must be sent by express overnight service with 

signature and tracking required. 

4. Data files containing PII that are being sent by e-mail must be encrypted with FIPS 

140-2 certified encryption products. 

5. Passwords used to encrypt data files must be sent separately from the encrypted data 

file (i.e., telephone call, or separate letter). 

6. Web sites established for the submission ofinformation that includes Pil must use 

PIPS 140-2 certified encryption methods. 

7. In addition to other reporting requirements, the loss, or suspected loss, ofPD must be 

reported immediately upon discovery to: 

(a) For DOL, the DOL PU Breach Response Team at zzowcpsecurity@dol.gov 

and the HHS PII Breach Response Team. 

(b) For HHS, the HHS PII Breach Response Team at csirc@hhs.gov and the DOL 

Pil Breach Response Team. 

3. Provision ofOther Technical Assistance to HHS 

DOL will provide assistance to HHS, upon request, in identifying and accessing 

information needed to reconstruct radiation doses and evaluate petitions from classes of 

workers to be included in the SEC, and for claims and petitions received from current and 

former employees and survivors at DOE and A WE facilities. Other technical assistance 

will be provided to HHS, upon request, to aid in the development ofstrategies to identify 

and prioritize for studying DOE/A WE or beryllium vendor facilities where significant 

contamination may have remained after activities relating to the production ofnuclear 

weapons were discontinued. 

4. Timeliness ofProvision ofInformation and Technical Assistance 

4 
DOL recognizes that time is of the essence in terms ofproviding information to HHS. 

DOL will provide all requested information to HHS in a timely and efficient manner. If 

the requested information cannot be provided in a timely manner, DOL will provide 

whatever portion ofthe requested information is available, as well as an estimate ofwhen 

the remaining information will be produced. Following transmission ofthis estimate, 

DOL will continue to work to provide all requested information to HHS as quickly as 

possible, unless HHS notifies DOL that the remaining information is not required. 

5. Outreach 

DOL wi11 coordinate outreach efforts with HHS to inform the public of changes to SEC 

classes or other related programmatic changes, as required. DOL will coordinate efforts 

ofthe Joint Outreach Task Force with HHS. 

6. Official Point ofContact 

DOL 4esignates the following individual as the official point of contact for this MOU: 

Name: Rachel P. Leiton 

Title: Director, Division of Energy Employees Occupational Illness 

Compensation · 

Address: 200 Constitution Avenue, NW 

C-3321 

Washington, DC 20210 

Telephone: (202) 693-0081 

Fax: (202) 693-1465 

C. BBS Responsibilities 

1. Identification ofData Needs 

HHS will evaluate and identify the data, documents, and information that are relevant and 

necessary for carrying out its responsibilities under EEOICP A, including estimating 

radiation doses for individual-covered employees with cancer, conducting reworks of 

dose reconstructions when new information is available, conducting special reviews of 

dose reconstruction methodology such as PERs, evaluating petitions by classes of 

employees for inclusion in the SEC, and evaluating residual contamination at facilities of 

both A WEs and beryllium vendors. Additionally, HHS will complete dose 

reconstructions for uranium miners and millers, as requested by DEEOIC. 

In conducting these activities, HHS will strive for efficiency in collecting data. To 

accomplish this goal, HHS will search relevant in-house data sources to ensure that 

requests for access to necessary infomiation are not duplicative. llliS will request only 

the data and information IIllS believes are relevant to accomplish its duties under 

EEOICPA. In addition, as feasible, without delaying the individual dose reconstruction 

5 
process and the consideration of SEC petitions, HHS will work with DOL to identify 

pertinent existing databases and general information needs relevant for entire processes, 

buildings, employment groups, or facilities. This approach of first using HHS-held data 

and information and then collecting individualized data and, in parallel, seeking general 

and group data will facilitate timely and cost-efficient dose reconstructions and 

evaluation ofSEC class petitions. It is expected that this approach will best enable the 

expeditious accretion ofinformation and diminish the impact on DOL and HHS resources 

overtime. 

HHS is responsible for determining what data and information are necessary for 

completing its responsibilities under EEOICP A, including performing dose 

reconstructions and evaluating SEC petitions, responding to issues raised by the ABRWH 

and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) contractors, and completing 

special reviews ofdose reconstruction methodology. 

HHS will be responsible for the management ofall data collected by HHS employees and 

contractors, including data obtained from DOL and its contractors. HHS employees and 

contractors will safeguard all data in accordance with the National Institute for 

Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Division ofCompensation Analysis and 

Support (DCAS) policies, as well as guidance Wlder the HHS Policy for Information 

Technology (IT) Security and Privacy Incident Reporting and Response 

(http://www.hhs.gov/ocio/policy/hhs ocio policy 2010 0004.html) 

HHS amended its Privacy Act Systems ofRecords for an existing NIOSH System of 

Records, 09-20-0147, "Occupational Health Epidemiological Studies, EEOICPA 

Program Records and WfC Health Program Records, HHS/CDC/NIOSH." on August 

15, 2002, September 29, 2003, January 25, 2011, May 27, 2011, and JW1e 14, 2011, to 

add new routine uses required to carry out EEOICPA responsibilities and to revise the 

system name. 

2. Protection ofPersonally Identifiable Information 

Information determined to be Personally Identifiable Information (Pll) must be protected 

in accordance with relevant statutes, Office ofManagement and Budget (0MB) 

guidelines, and OOL and HHS regulations and policies. HHS Privacy Act regulations are 

found at 45 C.F.R. pt. Sb, and HHS policies regarding PII may be found at 

bttps://www.hhs.gov/foia/privacy/index.html. DOL Privacy Act regulations are found 

at 29 C.F.R. pt. 71, and DO~ policies regarding PII may be found at 

https://www.dol.gov/genera1/pii. 

For this MOU, all parties agree that PU must be protected in accordance with the Privacy 

Act of 1974, 0MB Circular No. A-130, ''Management ofFederal Information 

Resources," and each Agency's regulations and policies. Transmission ofdata between 

Agencies will be in accordance with agreed-upon protocols which will, at a minimum, 

include the following requirements: 

6 
I. Data stored on removable media (CD, DVD, USB Flash Drives, etc.) must be 

protected using encryption products that are Federal Information Processing Standards 

(FIPS) 140-2 certified. 

2. Passwords used in conjwiction with FIPS 140-2 certified encryption must meet the 

current HHS password requirements {which at this time include a minimum of 8 

characters with at least one uppercase letter, one lowercase letter, one numeral (numbers 

0-9), and one special character(!@#$&)). 

3. Transmission ofremovable media must be sent by express overnight service with 

signature and tracking required. 

4. Data files containing PU that are being sent by e-mail must be encrypted with FIPS 

140-2 certified encryption products. 

5. Passwords used to encrypt data files must be sent separately from the encrypted data 

file {i.e., telephone call, or separate letter). 

6. Web sites established for the submission ofinformation that includes Pil must use 

FIPS 140-2 certified encryption methods. 

7. Remote access to systems and databases that contain Pil must use two-factor 

authentication for logon access control. 

8. In addition to other reporting requirements, the loss, or suspected loss, ofPII must be 

reported immediately upon discovery to: 

(a) For HHS, the HHS PII Breach Response Team at csirc@hhs.gov and the 

DOL PU Breach Response Team. 

(b) For DOL, the DOL Pll Breach Response Team at zzowcpsecurity@dol.gov 

and the HHS PII Breach Response Team. 

3. Requesting Data from DOL 

HHS will direct requests to DOL for data, docwnents, and information deemed by HHS 

to be relevant and necessary for carrying out its responsibilities under EEOICP A, 

including estimating radiation doses for individual-covered employees with cancer, 

conducting reworks of dose reconstructions when new information is available, 

conducting special reviews ofdose reconstruction methodology such as PERs, evaluating 

petitions by classes of employees for inclusion in the SEC, and evaluating residual 

contamination at A WEs and beryllimn vendors. 

7 
4. Programmatic Changes and Outreach 

HHS will inform DOL of updates to SEC class definitions and changes in methodology 

(PERs) in a timely manner. HHS will coordinate outreach efforts with DOL to inform 

the public ofchanges to SEC classes or other related programmatic changes, as required. 

5. Official Point of Contact 

HHS designates the following individual as the official point of contact for this MOU: 

Name: Stuart L. Hinnefeld 

Title: Director, Division of Compensation Analysis and Support 

Address: Taft Library 

1150 Tusculum Avenue 

Cincinnati, OH 45226 

Mail Stop C46 

Telephone: (513) 533-6835 

Fax: (513) 533M6826 

VI. DISPOSITION OF RECORDS 

Each party is to be responsible for the disposition ofrecords in its possession in 

accordance with its own records retention authorities. 

VII. RESPONDING TO FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT REQUESTS 

Determinations regarding release ofinformation exchanged pursuant to this MOU that is 

responsive to a valid request under the Freedom oflnfonnation Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. § 

552, will be made by the Agency from which the information originated. 

Vlll. DURATION 

This MOU will be effective for a period not to exceed three (3) years from the date of 

execution; however, it will be reviewed annually to ensure that the business need and 

details remain cwrent. 

IX. DISPUTE RESOLUTION 

Any disputes under this agreement shall be resolved in the manner prescn'bed in Treasury 

Financial Manual, Volume I, Bulletin No. 2007-03, Attachment 1, sec. VII, as prescribed 

by 0MB memo M-07-03. 

8 
X. EFFECT OF AGREEMENT 

This agreement is an internal Government agreement and is not intended to confer any 

right upon any private person. 

Nothing in this agreement shall be interpreted as limiting, superseding, or otherwise 

affecting either agency's normal operations or decisions in carrying out its statutory or 

regulatory duties. This agreement does not limit or restrict the parties from participating 

in similar activities or arrangement with other entities. 

This agreement does not itself authorize the expenditure or reimbursement of any funds. 

Nothing in this agreement obligates the parties to expend appropriations or enter into any 

contract or other obligations. 

This agreement will be executed in full compliance with all applicable laws, including the 

Privacy Act of 1974, the Freedom ofInformation Act, and the Federal Records Act. 

XI. MODfflCATION OR CANCELLATION 

This MOU, or any ofits specific provisions, may be cancelled or amended by mutual, 

written agreement ofboth parties at any time. Cancellation ofthis MOU by one ofthe 

parties may be accomplished by a 90-day advance written notification by either HHS or 

DOL to the other party. 

Xll. RESPONSIBLE OFFICIALS 

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH 

AND HUMAN SERVICES 

B y, el P. Leiton St

Director Director 

Division ofEnergy Employees Division ofCompensation Analysis 

Occupational Illness Compensation and Support 

[Signature on File] [Signature on File]

9